1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally related to creepers having wheels for rolling over a surface, and is more specifically related to plumber's creepers used under sinks and inside cabinets.
2. Description of the Related Art
A creeper is a movable platform on which an individual lies on his or her back in order to maneuver into or underneath low and confined spaces. Plumber's creepers are designed to facilitate working underneath kitchen sinks and inside cabinets having a surface that is raised relative to a floor surface. The plumber's field has developed various devices to address the particular nuances of a worker lying on his or her back, while attempting to navigate inside the cabinet, and while supporting his or her upper body weight over two different heights for the floor surface and the cabinet floor. For conventional cabinets, the height difference between the floor surface and the cabinet floor is typically about 3.5 to 5.5 inches.
There have been numerous attempts directed to providing plumber's creepers. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,677,569 to Larson discloses a foldable creeper having a lower body support with four wheels mounted thereon and an extender for supporting the upper body having a single wheel mounted on the underside thereof. The extender is connected to the lower body support via a hinge so that the extender can be folded over the lower body support. The wheels on the lower body support are designed to be positioned on a floor surface and the single wheel on the extender is designed to be positioned on a cabinet floor having a greater height than the floor surface. Larson does not enable an operator to adjust the height of the creeper to accommodate cabinet floors having different heights.
U.S. Patent Application Publication No, 2011/0049822 to Hinman discloses a plumber's creeper for supporting a person in a generally horizontal position. The creeper has a bottom side having wheels mounted thereon and a top side having a foam pad or cushion. The wheels are attached to the underside of the support platform and allow the device to be moved and maneuvered by the user. The wheels are affixed and positioned such that the head end of the creeper is cantilever supported beyond the forward most wheels to enable a person to enter the opening of a sink type cabinet door and navigate above the raised toe kickboard and cabinet floor while the creeper wheels remain on the floor outside of the cabinet. The wheels have locking pins that enable a worker to adjust the height of the platform to accommodate varying cabinet toe kickboard heights. The platform head end supports the person's head and upper torso while working within the confined cabinet space. The platform head end has an inwardly tapered section including two substantially semi-circle cutouts so that the device can be moved into cabinets having a smaller entry port than the full width of the device.
In spite of the above advances, there are many drawbacks associated with prior art creepers. First, in the Larson design, the single wheel on the extender does not provide sufficient lateral support for a worker's upper body as the worker rolls from side to side, which will result in the creeper tipping inside the cabinet. Second, in the Larson design, the single wheel mounted on the underside of the extender results in all of the worker's weight being concentrated onto the single wheel, which may result in the wheel denting or marring the surface of the cabinet floor. Third, the Larson device does not provide for height adjustment so that it cannot be modified to work well inside cabinets having different cabinet floor heights.
These deficiencies are not overcome by the Hinman reference, which discloses a creeper that provides no support for the upper body, which will result in the upper section of the creeper tipping inside the cabinet, and which will cause stress and strain on the user due to there being no lateral support inside the cabinet. Moreover, the Hinman device has a very complex procedure for adjusting the height of the creeper whereby locking pins must be removed from each wheel and then re-installed. In Hinman, the locking pins may be misplaced or lost, which renders the device useless for its intended use.
Thus, there remains a need for improved plumber's creepers that may be used inside cabinets having different cabinet floor heights, that may be easily adjusted to different heights, that provide enhanced support for an upper body as a user rolls from side to side inside a cabinet, that facilitate rolling movement of the upper body portion of the creeper inside a cabinet, that minimize the chances of exposure to chemicals and liquids present inside the cabinet, and that will not damage or mar the surface of the cabinet floor as the creeper rolls over a cabinet floor.